Team asks for four extra pacers for SA tour

The national selectors have picked a 17-member squad for the three-Test series in South Africa but the Indian team management wants a few more. It has requested the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to send a few extra fast bowlers to South Africa.

Mirror has learnt that the team management has identified four young pacers and wants them to accompany the squad at least during the first half of the month-long Test series.

The four pacers are Mohammed Siraj of Hyderabad, Avesh Khan of Madhya Pradesh, Navdeep Saini of Delhi and Basil Thampi of Kerala.

India are to play three Tests in Cape Town, Centurion and Johannesburg.

The idea behind the request is not difficult to discern. The think-tank wants to give the batsmen the best possible preparation against fast bowling considering that South Africa are expected to unleash their pace battery – Kagiso Rabada, Morne Morkel, Vernon Philander and Dale Steyn --against the Indian batsmen.

The Indian squad already has six fast bowlers in the South Africa-bound contingent but the team management obviously wants to reduce the workload of Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohammed Shami, Ishant Sharma, Umesh Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah and Hardik Pandya in the nets.

“It will serve double purpose. The young pacers will learn a lot by travelling with the team and bowling to international batsmen. It will also reduce the workload of our pacers in the nets. The request is to keep them for at least three weeks,” said a source with direct knowledge of the development.

There was no immediate confirmation from the BCCI as chief executive Rahul Johri was away in Singapore but the team source has said that the request is expected to be approved.

Two of the four identified pacers, Saini and Thampi, are involved in the ongoing Ranji Trophy quarter-finals for Delhi and Kerala respectively. Should their sides win their respective games, they may continue to be involved in the tournament. But by the time the teams leaves for South Africa (on December 28), most of these players should be free. Thampi and Siraj are also in the India squad for the T20Is against Sri Lanka later this month.

Kaul ready for his chance

Pacer Siddharth Kaul is waiting for his chance in the upcoming three-match ODI series against Sri Lanka.

"I am not thinking too much about that (the competition). I am going into the series with a mindset that helped me do well in domestic cricket, IPL and India. I am ready to do what the team demands from me," Kaul said.
(WITH AGENCY INPUTS)